New Japan transport minister to review JAL rescue

TOKYO, Sept 17 - Japan's new transport minister, Seiji Maehara, said he would review turnaround plans for Japan Airlines Corp (JAL) as bidders circle the loss-making carrier.

Speaking at his first news conference since being appointed on Wednesday as part of a new Japanese government, Maehara said he wanted to know if the state-supervised revitalisation for the carrier was feasible and he would change the members of an independent panel reviewing the turnaround plan.

JAL, which is undergoing a state-supervised overhaul, reportedly aims to raise 250 billion yen ($2.75 billion) through a mixture of equity and debt financing by March to fund a restructuring plan including cutting 6,800 jobs.

Delta Airlines and American Airlines are in rival talks to invest in Asia's largest airline by revenue and JAL wants to close a deal by mid-October.

The new government, led by the Democratic Party, could change the situation if it decides to take a harder stance than the previous Liberal Democratic Party administration, which had put its weight behind a state-assisted revamp of JAL.

Maehara has previously questioned the heavy hand played by government in the aviation industry and urged further deregulation. ($1=91.00 Yen)